Take My Head, Turn It Upside Down
by Ikathy
Summary: Playboy Photo Shoot AU. He had only one rule: don't mess with work. But what if work was messing with him? Miraxus Week Day 6: Storm.


**Take My Head, Turn It Upside Down**

Being a photographer occasionally freelancing for Playboy surely had its perks. Meaning, he could spend some of his days working with naked hot women and – the best part of it – _be the boss of them_. He could tell them exactly what to do, how they should be positioned, where they should put her hands and so on. He could say to them what a man should think when looking at their pictures on the magazine without fear of being too obscene. He could do _anything_.

Well, anything except _touch_. For obvious reasons.

It surely sucked having mischievous eyes looking at him like an invitation and not being able to anything about it later, but it was just part of acting with professionalism. Many _professional_ photographers had been fired, though, because they couldn't _hold their shit_ together. They would rather lose their jobs and bear with the consequences of a law suit for harassment than keeping their hands to themselves and being. Fucking. _Professional_.

Laxus found those who treated coworkers as pieces of meat disgusting and an insult to the whole category. Many were the times when he got closer from the models on set in order to give them clearer instructions and they looked back at him with suspicious eyes, as he was about to attack them, and it pissed him off. Honestly, was it so damn hard to keep one's cool and then just jerk off later when no one else was around to look? Geez. It was ok to feel turned on – it was almost impossible _not_ to, actually – but those women were there for the sole purpose of _working_ , not fulfilling their sick fantasies. Go watch some porn or whatever.

People like him were an almost extinct species, it seemed, because lately he had been called for so many jobs in sequence that he barely had the time to sit down and have a beer with his old Gramps. Actually, he was pretty sure his apartment had already been colonized by all types of fungi because he hadn't been there for a whole month. Good thing he didn't own any plants or pets, otherwise they would be already dead and rotten by now.

Apparently, that week wasn't going to be any different than his previous ones as he got a desperate call from one of the creative manager's assistants while he hadn't even finished his current photo session, asking him to go to some tropical island because the previous photographer was arrested for sexual assault and he couldn't make it. Sigh.

That's how he found himself on a plane to The Bahamas nearly ten hours later.

.

 _It's so fucking hot in here_ , was the first thought that came to his head when he finally landed. Freed Justine, another one of the many creative manager's assistants from Playboy, was already waiting for him at the arrival area.

" _God_ , you are _so_ late." It wasn't even eight in the morning and Freed was already freaking out. Nothing new there.

"Not my fault, the flight got delayed." He shrugged. "They had to close the airport due to bad weather."

"Whatever, let's _go_." Freed took the bag in which he carried his photography equipment and made way through the people passing by. "The model is ready and everything is already set to go so you just have to get there, point and click."

"Isn't she a rookie?" He grunted. Laxus preferred talking with the models and maybe working with some poses with their clothes still on before the real photo shoot started so they would get more comfortable with being fully nude in front of strangers. Young females that had never worked with sensual material before found it particularly hard to relax, making it two times longer to get clean shots.

"Well, yes." The green-haired man rolled his eyes, impatiently opening the trunk of a black minivan, and gestured for him to drop his clothing bag inside. "But this has to be finished by the end of the day because the model has some stupid charity event to attend _in_ _Canada_ , my boss is chewing my butt for a whole variety of reasons and I'm starting to have murderous thoughts so _bear with me_... please."

If the always polite Freed was talking to him like that, his butt really must have been chewed, Laxus thought. He made no further objections as they opened the car's doors.

"Hey man, 'sup!" Bickslow, the person in charge of scenery, cheerfully greeted him from behind the wheel as they got in their seats. He started the engine and drove on high speed along the highway. "You're gonna love Mira, she's a peach. Can't wait to buy her issue."

Giving the circumstances, being a peach was not exactly helpful. Laxus would rather have some nasty hooker/dancer/dominatrix to work with if he needed to be fast. Freed was probably thinking the same because he pulled an asthma inhaler out of his pocket and sucked the air through it vigorously. He wasn't even asthmatic.

It didn't take longer for them to arrive at the shooting place. The landscape was absolutely beautiful: a beach with fine and bright-colored sand where coconut trees stood tall, with their leaves being softly rustled by the warm breeze; a plain seashore, where small waves crashed slowly with a relaxing sound, leaving a trail of foam before disappearing; and behind all that, a deep-blue ocean that went on and on until it connected with the sky by a thin line, shining brightly as the sunrays hit its surface. Too bad he wouldn't stay long enough to enjoy it.

A small portion of the beach was interdicted to accommodate the set installations and security staff was surrounding the perimeter in order to keep curious eyes away. Light modifiers were spread through the sand near the sea and also beside some props. Under Freed's hysterical look, Laxus promptly took his equipment bag and kneeled on the sandy floor, zipping it open to take his tripod out. He was feeling highly uncomfortable in his jeans and dress shirt as the sun hit him mercilessly, but he hardly doubted the man would let him change before he got all sticky.

At a corner of the set, Evergreen, the hairdresser and makeup artist, was chatting with a white-haired woman that he immediately recognized as the model. After making sure Laxus was hurrying to set his equipment ready, Freed got to her in short quick steps and spoke a few words before they walked together towards him.

"Miss Strauss, please meet Laxus Dreyar, our photographer." Freed mechanically introduced him as Laxus turned to look at her, putting his business face on. "Laxus, this is Mirajane Strauss, our newest model."

The woman was nothing less than gorgeous. She had angelic features, with a pale-white skin that looked just like marble and big blue eyes that shone like two gemstones. Her body was covered by a robe, but he still could notice how curvy it was, leaving him wondering if she was just as beautiful underneath that thick fabric.

Bickslow was right, she was a peach.

"Please, call me Mira." She smiled brightly and extended a hand for him to shake, which he did right away. "I'm really glad you turned out to be the photographer for today because I heard the other guy was kind of handsy with the models and it got me feeling a bit hesitant with this, but then Freed said to me that he got replaced and my friend Jenny had already told me a great deal of things about you, so I'm actually quite relieved."

He smirked, feeling proud of being praised. It was always a good thing when people recommended him because it meant that not only more cash was going to flow into his bank account, but also that his work was being widely recognized and he wouldn't rest until he was known as the best there was in the field. He didn't want to be 'celebrity famous' – it would be annoying, actually –, he only wanted to be everyone's first choice when it came to photographic essays.

"She told you only the _good_ things, I hope." Mirajane chuckled lightly at his words and he found himself greatly enjoying the sound of it. "I'm sorry my flight got delayed. I usually start things slowly so you could get the chance to loosen up a bit first, but since we are on a tight schedule here, I don't suppose it's going to be possible today."

"Oh, don't worry about that. Freed have already explained everything to me." She waved a hand dismissively at him. "I'm a bit nervous, but I can manage."

That being said, she unexpectedly untied the knot of her robe and let it slide to the floor, revealing her naked figure. Right in front of him.

 _Very straightforward_.

"…Ok, then." Was his tight answer as he struggled to keep his eyes up in her face. He was _so curious_ to sneak a peek, but it would be extremely rude if he just _stared_ and he still got a reputation to keep up to – he was a fucking _pro_ after all –, so he decided to wait until she wasn't looking. "Let's begin with the sun lounge shots, shall we?"

She nodded cheerily at him and turned to walk towards the arrangements. Seeing that as an opportunity, Laxus shot a quick glance at her rear and immediately thought that maybe it was the most perfect ass he had ever seen in his career, all round and soft and ready to be eaten. Absolutely no Photoshop would be required, which was a rare thing these days. The models weren't less hot for having cellulitis or a small belly showing up – it was all _bullshit_ to worry about that, in his opinion –, but the editors wanted a plastic perfect Barbie doll, not real women, so most of the photos usually went through some retouch before being published.

He rolled up the sleeves of his shirt and fit his camera in the tripod, taking a position some steps away from her as she kneeled beside the prop. "Whenever you're ready."

Mirajane turned her head slightly to look at the camera and if she was feeling nervous, she was successfully hiding it. Her gaze was sultry but at the same time _innocent_ as she bent over the wooden lounge, while her slightly parted lips were calling him as a tempting invitation to be kissed. Most women that posed for Playboy went with an 'I'm going to ravish you' attitude, but instead she wore a 'come and ravish me' one and it worked perfectly for her.

As she switched positions, he couldn't find a single angle that worked in her disfavor. Her breasts were perky and just as round and soft as her butt and the sides of her body were a smooth line that shaped perfectly her small waist and large hips. The way her hair framed her face and fell above her shoulders in a cascade of waves made her look like a goddess. Everything about her was flat out enticing and Laxus had to admit he was having trouble containing some ' _happy'_ thoughts.

He would be eternally glad that the hem of his shirt was covering _all the action_ going on inside his pants.

"Let's move to the floor." Laxus said after he decided he had a good amount of lounge shots. Mirajane willingly stood up and bent down by the seashore a few meters away, stretching herself like a cat. Again, he almost didn't have to give her instructions, only occasionally a 'lower your chin a little' or a 'turn your head to the left a bit', as she already knew exactly what to do with her body. Actually, it looked like _he_ was the one being told what to do and it was turning him on heavily.

She turned around to lay on her back and he had never felt such a strong urge to lick the sand off of a woman's body as he wanted to do right now. Even the whole crew was watching from afar with great admiration as she posed, but they could never get the feeling of being stared directly by those alluring eyes. They were oddly… _hypnotizing_ , like he was being transported to another dimension where his head wasn't working properly.

Fuck, he would certainly have _sweet_ _dreams_ at night.

"Should I get into the water now?" She sheepishly asked like she wasn't naked and posing seductively at all. Laxus only nodded – his throat was suddenly too dry to form words – and turned to look at Evergreen, who promptly understood and walked towards Mirajane, carrying a spray can. He waited from afar as she fixed the model's now wet hair and checked for any signs of smudgy mascara. After she certified everything was in place, she gave him a small nod to continue and he took his camera out of his tripod so he could kneel beside Mirajane to take closer shots.

Watching the drops of water slide through her body was making Laxus feel funny things in his stomach. It was kind of a surprise to him – being so attracted to an angel face woman, that is – since he was more into an aggressive type. Even with that fact working against her, she was still being able to turn his head upside down, so he was sure Mirajane's issue was definitely going to be a best-seller, which could also mean he would get some good publicity. It was a win-win situation, in his opinion.

If he thought he wouldn't get luckier than that, he was definitely wrong as he couldn't believe it when a group of flamingos flew by at the exact moment he clicked. Laxus even stopped shooting and looked at the digital visor of his camera to admire his own work, mesmerized. Mirajane was pure perfection in the middle of all those pink birds, seeming almost ethereal. He would definitely ask for permission to frame that picture and hang it on the wall of his living room later.

Considering that all the odds were against him at the beginning of the day, with his flight being late and the model he should work with being a newbie in the field, his morning turned out as a miracle. Honestly, he couldn't think in any way his day could be ruined anymore…

Until _that_ happened.

He was almost finished with the sea shots when a huge ass storm came out from _nowhere_ and unloaded all its fury right over their heads. Lightning and thunder blustered in the sky as the crew rushed to get all the equipment out and save them from ruination, carrying them to a small kiosk nearby.

"I can believe this is happening to me." Freed mumbled, as everyone watched helplessly the heavy rain pouring down the beach. "The weather forecast said it was going to be a _sunny_ day."

"It's just a summer storm." Laxus stated, checking if his camera was all right. Fortunately it was, but his shirt was all soaked and water was dripping from his clothes to all over the floor. Well, at least his luggage was still on the car so he could change later. "It's going to be over soon."

However, a whole hour passed and the rain was still falling with full force, so they decided to make a small pause for lunch, hoping it didn't take much longer for the tempest to stop. Laxus dropped his equipment on one of the kiosk's tables, running his hand through his damp hair, and sighed heavily. At least he could cool himself down before his lecherous thoughts towards Mirajane turned into some serious shit.

"Here, cowboy." Drawing his attention to her, Evergreen approached and handed him a towel, which he promptly accepted, taking his wet shirt off. "Dry yourself before _someone_ tears _actual_ holes through you."

"What?" Laxus's brows furrowed with confusion as she only grinned in response. "What are you talking about?"

"Mira's been totally checking you out since we had to interrupt the session." He motioned to turn his head, but Evergreen spoke before he did. "Don't, she's still looking."

"You are messing with me." Laxus grunted, though he felt that small twitch in his stomach again. He knew he was good looking and hitting the gym on his free time did wonders for him, so he was confident enough to claim he could hit any bar and easily walk out with the prettiest woman in there, but having a super model – the same one he was drooling all over not long ago – look at him and _appreciate_ the view was in a whole new level. He had to admit that it got him feeling _cocky_.

Laxus wouldn't do anything about that, though. It was his one and only rule: _don't mess with work_ , not even after it was all done. Despite the fact that some models had showed interest in him before – meaning, they _wanted_ to be touched –, asking a woman out after taking naked pictures of her would be kind of creepy, so he usually pretended not to notice. It was surely a shitty rule, but still the reason why he managed so successfully to keep his career going without any incidents. _Making_ _sacrifices_ – and sulking over it later, but still – was part of being a real pro after all, and the ones that couldn't do that were _losers_.

"She's blushing like a convent a maiden, it's so cute. Let the girl have her moment of glory before I ruin it for her by getting you some clean clothes." Evergreen gave him a tiny wink before leaving.

Laxus finally turned to look at Mirajane – yes, she was a _tomato_ – at the same time Freed took her out of her dreaming state and said the car was ready to drive her to the hotel so she could shower for the time being. He watched as she stood up and tightened the knot of her robe before leaving with her head down, not daring to look at him again. It _was_ kind of cute.

She could be the prettiest creature to ever on planet Earth, but he wouldn't mess with work at any fucking circumstances.

.

"Freed, do you know if Mr. Dreyar has a girlfriend?"

"I'm pretty sure he doesn't, Miss Strauss, but I believe he has a preference for _femme fatale_ women, if you know what I mean."

"Oh… _I see._ "

.

It was three in the afternoon and the storm was finally gone. They stood in the middle of the desolated scene, thinking about what to do next.

"The sand is shit and this cloudy sky will mess with the lights." Bickslow explained to Freed, with arms crossed. "I think I can improve something at the hotel's pool, but we'll have to rethink the nature theme."

" _Sweet_ _Tropical Love_ theme." The green-haired man corrected his colleague, sniffing audibly. "The pool is not going to work. This is a nightmare."

"Well, it'll _have_ to work since the girl's got a tight schedule and ain't no time to find another place." Bickslow rolled his eyes at Freed's drama. "Boss'd better suck it 'cause that's it. A pool is still tropical enough, I suppose."

"Hey, guys!" Evergreen called from the kiosk. "Mira has an idea."

.

Laxus surveyed the new location, where the sea hit heavily against the rocky slope. The problem of the light reflecting too much on the floor due to the clouds' whiteness was solved, but the sky was still gray and he couldn't see how the scenario was favorable to their theme.

"You just wait and see." Bickslow smirked ironically when he stated that out loud. "Man, this is gonna be awesome."

"If you say so." He simply replied, shrugging.

Equipment all set, Laxus was only waiting for Evergreen to be done with Mirajane's hair and makeup. When they finally showed up a few minutes later, the vision hit him hard like a punch in the face.

She was a whole different person. Her makeup was heavy black, which produced a nice contrast with the blue of her eyes, and she wore a dark lipstick that made her lips bigger and really appetizing. Her hair was mussed in all the right places, looking untamed. She looked so… He didn't have words to describe her anymore.

"Dude, close your mouth." Bickslow elbowed him between the ribs, grinning wildly. "By the way, we are changing the theme to some angel-demon shit, I don't know the details. You probably know what to do anyways, right?"

"…Right." He mumbled, setting the camera ready with mechanical movements. Angel-demon shit definitely summed it all up as she went from 'salvation of tired souls' to 'downfall of righteous men' in less than a day.

Mirajane walked to the border of the slope and bent over the rocks, shooting him a wild look. He shivered.

 _Fuck._

"I'm ready!" Her voice was still soft and likeable, but underneath that tone he could sense real danger, as she was a feline ready to devour him. Laxus swallowed hard, hiding behind the camera, and tried not to think about _anything_ , otherwise his mind would start to imagine all the _wrong_ things about her again and wrong things were _bad for business_.

He framed her and clicked. Now he only had to repeat it a thousand times and then he would finally be able to go home – a _safe_ place, with no damn models to turn him into a brainless animal – and be cool. And speaking of safety, maybe hanging her picture on the wall wouldn't be a good idea. Instead, he would definitely use that Chihuahua photo shoot he did for a pet magazine.

Controlling his thoughts was an impossible task, though, because the 'come and ravish me' attitude was gone for sure, having been replaced by an 'I dare you to ravish me', and his skin was prickling with volition to do just that, sending his mind on a rampage as she arched her back and threaded her fingers in her hair while the waves clashing against the rocks behind her sprinkled her body with water.

Heavens, _what was happening to him?_

Laxus was like a volcano about to erupt. His 'poker face' was still on as he took the shots, but on the inside he had never felt so out of control before, to the point of barely recognizing himself. He had been working so long for Playboy that female nudity has become something banal to him, but now he was unsettled by it. He was definitely sure he would never try to grope her as a lot of (un)professionals would have done, but for the first time in his career, he was genuinely afraid his eyes would give away his intention to do so.

He didn't want to embarrass Mirajane – hell, he didn't want to embarrass _himself_ like that – so Laxus did the only thing he could at this sort of situation: took deep breaths and pretended nothing was going on inside his pants _or_ mind. Since she didn't need directions at all, he focused on a random point in the sky while automatically taking the pictures and kept going until he had enough material to deliver to Freed's boss.

"We are done." He announced in a hurry, turning his camera off. Evergreen was the first to move, holding the model's robe, and the rest of the crew followed right after in order to disassemble the light modifiers.

Laxus cleaned the sweat of his forehead on his t-shirt's sleeve and grabbed his tripod, planning to get away from there as soon as possible, but before he could do anything, Mirajane came running to his side. He clenched his jaw and shifted his weight from one leg to another uncomfortably, reaching for his bag so he didn't have to look right back at her as she spoke.

"Mr. Dreyar, I hope the photos are all right. I am very insecure about this new approach." Her apologetic voice told him. _Liar, you knew exactly what you were doing_. "It's not a side of me that I often show to other people because they expect me to be lovely and sweet at all times, but since the opportunity came out, I thought it wouldn't be too bad to reveal my true self."

So she had a little demon inside of her all that time. _Heh_ , he should have guessed she was the devil in disguise to be able to drive him insane like that. It wouldn't surprise him if she materialized some kind of contract – certainly an offer he _couldn't_ refuse – in exchange for his soul.

He wouldn't fucking admit he would be tempted to accept, though.

"They're way better than the predicted of a beginner, so I wouldn't worry about that." Laxus sincerely replied, focused solely on adjusting his tripod in the bag. "You did a great job."

"You know… I was just trying to seduce you."

He froze, considering the possibility of his mind playing tricks on him, before turning his head slowly to look at her, wide-eyed. Mirajane had a shy smile crossing her lips, but her eyes had a predatory flare that made something inside of him boil like water in a pressure cooker. He felt the muscles of his shoulders tensing up, and his Adam's apple bobbing up and down furiously in his throat, unable to come up with a proper answer. Mirajane seemed to notice that because she pressed further.

"Did it work?" She blinked innocently at him, coming closer.

He opened his mouth slowly, wanting to say that well yes, it _obviously_ worked, how could it _not_ work if she was the hottest woman he had ever met and he was seriously thinking about a way of circumventing his absolute rule of not messing with work only to be able to feel the taste of her skin on his lips, even if that meant a one-way ticket to his own doom; but to his dismay-slash-relief Freed showed up, completely unaware of the fact that she was flirting with him.

Laxus looked away and ran a hand through his hair, sweating heavily. He was safe – _for now_.

"Miss Strauss, we are immensely grateful for your hard work." The green-haired man was finally back to his old composed self as he took one of Mirajane's hands, shaking it vigorously. "I will contact you when we have the issue ready so you can see the results for yourself before we publish it."

"That's great!" Mirajane said happily, reverting to her previous angelical sweetness as well. "Would you be so kind as to give Mr. Dreyar my number? I would love to have a signed copy of that shot with the flamingos."

He bit his lower lip, not daring to glance at her as he zipped his bag closed. His head was twirling with self-contradictory thoughts. A _super model_ wanted to give him her number, but he didn't get involved with coworkers. She was gorgeous, but it certainly meant trouble in the future. She seemed genuinely interested in him, but it could be only the side effects of a tropical parasite transmitted by mosquitoes. She _initiated_ it, so it wasn't _harassment_ , but it could turn into a media scandal just like the way that happened with that other guy.

"Of course, Miss Strauss, now if you don't mind, the car is ready to take you back to the hotel." Freed gestured for her to accompany him and she smiled politely at Laxus before walking away. He followed the swaying of her hips with resigned eyes, feeling lost – and a completely idiot for all those years he had mocked photographers that fell for the models' siren songs.

Mirajane turned her head slightly to give him one last intense look that left him heating up as if someone had covered his body with gasoline and lighted a match at him. He felt that thing on his stomach for the third time that day, promptly understanding the message hidden beneath her gaze.

 _Don't make me wait_.

Then Laxus finally ended his internal debate as he concluded that he still couldn't mess with work as stated by his one rule, _but when it was the work that was messing with him_ , well… it was a whole different thing, right? It was risky, but it would be immensely rude to leave a woman waiting, honestly.

Now, which frame would match the flamingos better, wooden or metal?


End file.
